1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid discharge apparatus including a purge mechanism which is configured to forcibly discharge bubbles and viscosity-increased inks contained in a liquid discharge head.
2. Description of the Related Art
An ink discharge apparatus of an ink-jet printer is known as an example of the conventional liquid discharge apparatus. In general, the ink discharge apparatus is provided with an ink-jet head having a plurality of nozzles through which inks are discharged and a plurality of driving sections which are provided corresponding to the plurality of nozzles respectively. When the printing is performed, the inks are discharged from the respective nozzles toward the printing paper by selectively operating the respective driving sections. On the other hand, when the maintenance is performed, then a nozzle cap is installed to a nozzle surface of the ink-jet head, and then the air contained in the nozzle cap is sucked by a suction pump. Accordingly, the bubbles and the viscosity-increased inks, which are contained in the ink-jet head, are forcibly discharged from the nozzles. The process or treatment, in which the viscosity-increased inks and the bubbles are forcibly discharged, is generally referred to as “purge”.